5 Game-Changing Facts Pokémon Unite Does Not Tell You
Pokémon Unite, and Pokémon games in general, have long been critiqued for their lack of communication. So it should come as no surprise that Unite has some of those same issues, even going as far as important game mechanics! In this article, we will break down 5 things that Unite does not tell you, either in menus or tutorials, that can have a big impact on how you play the game. A tremendous thank you to Unite-db.com and the “Mathcord” for collecting this important information!
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Score Alerts
Let's start with an easy one, the score alerts you receive throughout a game. For a game where victory is determined by score, it might be a surprise that there is no visible scoreboard while in a game. Still, the game is feeding you information, but you just might not know how to interpret it. Here is what each of those score messages mean:
- "It's a close battle!" Only 20 points or less separate the two teams.
- "We're in the lead!" Your team is winning by 21-99 points.
- "We have a huge lead!" Your team is winning by at least 100 points.
- "We're struggling to keep up!" Your team is losing by 21-99 points.
- "We're really struggling!" Your team is losing by at least 100 points.
Out of Combat Items
What does the text “out of combat” mean on Held Items? It means that these items have an internal cooldown stopping them from working until it's over. However, defining “out of combat” can be tricky by just reading it, when in fact the game defines being in combat by having dealt or dealing damage. All items with this text have a 5 second cooldown that will start whenever damage is dealt to the player, or the player inflicts damage. These items are:
- Float Stone (used for movement speed)
- Leftovers (used for health regeneration)
- Assault Vest (used for bonus Special Defense)
This has been made easier to track thanks to a previous patch. Now when one of these held items is on cooldown a small indicator will appear on screen for you to see.
Support + Defender Smite
Now this is where the list starts getting weird. Two roles in Pokémon Unite actually do bonus damage to wild Pokémon. This is known as a “Smite” effect in other MOBAs. Surprisingly those two roles are Supporter and Defender. All Pokémon of this role (except Hoopa for some reason) deal an additional 10% damage to wild Pokémon, and 20% more at level 9 and higher. However, not all of their moves deal extra damage. Only auto attacks and “Move A” which is the move closer to the bottom of your screen. This damage buff is not applied to Unite moves.
Rayquaza Buffs
When you defeat Rayquaza your entire team gets a shield that protects you. But that is not all! Two additional buffs are given to every alive member of your team as soon as Rayquaza is knocked out.
- A score speed bonus of x4 normal speed
- 40% Extra damage to auto attacks and Move A
This is in addition to the shield that prevents opponents from stopping your scores. All three of these buffs are removed when the Shield is depleted by enemy damage. Don’t be afraid to take an aggressive fight if the situation calls for it, you have some extra damage after all.
Wild Pokémon Scaling
Wild Pokémon are scattered across the map at the start of a Unite game but did you know they actually level up throughout a match as well? They scale over the course of ten minutes and actually become worth more experience as the game goes on. While this makes sense logically it actually allows for some clever strategies if you know the timing of when their value increases. Every 30 seconds the following happens to wild Pokémon:
- HP is increased
- Attack is increased
- Experience gained is increased
Top level competitive players utilize this information when clearing farm at the start of the game. Often leaving the double spawn of Bunnelby, if playing in lane, until just before 8:50. This way when the first set of mid lane objectives (Altaria and Swablu) spawn you have a better chance of reaching level 5. Similarly, some Central area players will wait until the first 30 seconds have passed to Knock Out a bigger piece of farm. All of these strategies take some level of coordination to pull off so make sure you are only trying these out in a team environment.
Joshua “ZOINKS” Hiebert is a Pokemon Unite Commentator and esports enthusiast residing in Chicago. He has worked on a variety of Unite events including the World Championships held in London in 2022, and in Japan in 2023. In his free time he can be found watching esports ranging from Pokemon, Overwatch, Halo, League of Legends, and even Mario Kart. In his writing and in his casting ZOINKS pushes to make sure that players stories are known to the audience.